Kevin Lawlor of Berks Catholic is UECU Player of the Week
A week or so before baseball season opened Berks Catholic coach Brandon Shurr mentioned that Kevin Lawlor was “ready to take off.”
It was more like a blast off for the Saints’ junior second baseman, who hit for the cycle and recorded nine straight hits at one point last week.
“Last year he started to really show signs of being ready to make a jump,” said Shurr. “In the offseason he got bigger and stronger. Through the first week, he’s really come through.”
Lawlor batted .769 over three games last week to earn Utilities Employees Credit Union Player of the Week honors. He drove in nine runs, scored nine runs and had four extra-base hits.
He hit for the cycle in a 15-1 win over Reading High, completing it with an inside-the-park homer in his fourth, and final, at bat.
“That was a great opportunity for him to do something like that,” said Shurr. “That’s a memory that will stay with him forever.”
Shurr, in his fifth season with the Saints’ program, can’t remember another Berks Catholic player hitting for the cycle in that time.
In seven-inning high school games players rarely get enough plate appearances to reach such a milestone.
The next day Lawlor went 4-for-4, scored four times and drove in two in a 13-8 win over Conrad Weiser. He opened Friday’s game against Twin Valley with a hit — his ninth straight — and finished it with two RBIs and a run scored.
Shurr said Lawlor has quick hands and good plate discipline; he rarely strikes out. That’s why he’s hitting in the No. 4 hole behind catcher R.J. Emrich, the Saints’ top hitter last season. Lawlor is also steady in the field.
“He’s that kid that when you’re in a tough situation, when a ground ball’s hit to him, you know the inning’s going to end because he’s going to make the play,” said Shurr.
Lawlor is the inaugural Utilities Employees Credit Union Player of the Week for 2020 Berks baseball season.
Players considered for Utilities Employees Credit Union Player of the Week honors are nominated by their coaches or by members of the MikeDragoSports.com coverage team.
Also nominated for Utilities Employees Credit Union Player of the Week:
- Dylan Glass, Daniel Boone
- Deven Sheerin, Exeter
- Braden Williams, Fleetwood
- Tyler Minick, Gov. Mifflin
- Nick Hugo, Kutztown
- Luis Beato, Muhlenberg
- Chase Reifsnyder, Oley Valley
- Kannon Zdimal, Twin Valley
- Matt Kramer, Wyomissing
